Ryan Stoa Rookie Rewind

A Review Of The Forward's 2010-11 Campaign

Despite appearing in 12 games for the Avalanche during the 2009-10 season, forward Ryan Stoa still retained his rookie status for the 2010-11 campaign.

After beginning this past season in Lake Erie, Stoa was recalled by Colorado in January and went on to appear in 25 games, totaling four points (2g/2a) and 20 penalty minutes.

The following is a look back at the forward's 2010-11 season.

First Recall
After spending the first three-plus months of the season with Colorado’s American Hockey League affiliate, the Lake Erie Monsters, Stoa was recalled to the Avalanche on Jan. 19.

He ranked third on the Monsters in scoring at the time of his recall with 28 points (15g/13a) in 44 games, and was named to the Western Conference roster for the 2011 AHL All-Star Classic but missed the game due to his recall.

Season Debut
One day after being recalled from Lake Erie, the former University of Minnesota standout made his season debut when the Avalanche hosted the Nashville Predators on Jan. 20 at Pepsi Center.

Stoa saw 15:27 of ice time in his first game of the 2010-11 campaign and recorded four shots on goal during Colorado’s 5-1 loss to Nashville.

Game-Winner
Stoa netted his first goal of the season in just his third game when Colorado hosted the St. Louis Blues on Jan. 24.

The Bloomington, Minn., native scored what appeared to be an insurance goal at 11:18 of the third period, but it ended up standing as the game-winning goal following a late marker by St. Louis forward David Backes. It was the third tally of Stoa’s NHL career and his first game-winner. He also logged a career-high 18:18 of ice time in the victory.

Another Goal
The 6-foot-3, 200-pound forward netted his second goal of the season in the very next game, marking the second time in his career he had scored in back-to-back contests (the first came when he tallied during Colorado’s final two games of the 2009-10 season).

His goal on Jan. 26 came off a low shot that got past Phoenix netminder Ilya Bryzgalov during Colorado’s 5-2 loss to the Coyotes.

On The Sidelines
Stoa was reassigned to Lake Erie on Feb. 5 and was recalled again on Feb. 18.

He would appear in each of Colorado’s first six games after being recalled, but was then sidelined for five games after being forced to undergo an emergency appendectomy on March 4. He would eventually return to Colorado’s lineup on March 17 at Calgary.

Shootout Winner
In only his second game back from the appendectomy, Stoa produced one of his most memorable moments of the season in a March 19 contest at Edmonton.

With the Avalanche and the Oilers engaged in a shootout, Stoa was called upon in the fourth round and subsequently converted his first career attempt by faking a wrist shot before moving the puck to his backhand and beating Edmonton goalie Nikolai Khabibulin.

A Helping Hand
In addition to his two goals, Stoa registered a pair of assists during his time with the Avalanche.

The first came on March 24 vs. Toronto when he earned the primary helper on a Ryan O’Reilly power-play tally. The second came two games later, as he picked up the secondary assist on another O’Reilly power-play goal on March 28 in Anaheim.

Back In Lake Erie
As was the case with many of Colorado’s rookies, Stoa was reassigned to Lake Erie following the conclusion of the Avalanche’s season to assist the Monsters in the Calder Cup Playoffs.

After notching 33 points (16g/17a) in 48 games with Lake Erie during the regular season, Stoa recorded one goal in seven postseason contests as the Monsters fell to the Manitoba Moose in a seven-game series.